Llamasoft are back! After the adventures of iOS games and TxK (Metacritic 84 / Edge [9]) for the Vita in 2014, they've been tucked away in deepest Wales preparing for their triumphant return. The end result is Polybius, an all-out sensory frenzy for the PS4 and PSVR! Made from a mixture of classic Llamasoft shooter style, the power of PS4 and one or two thousand curries, the game is a rush of power, movement and explosions. Play the game at up to 4K resolution on your TV or don PSVR and be the force. Load up, jack in and press X for enlightenment.

As older gamers may know, Llamasoft having been making videogames since the early 1980s - often off-beat and unusual, always enticing. The team consists of just two guys; Jeff "Yak" Minter and Ivan "Giles" Zorzin. Their titles have included Metagalactic Llamas Battle at the Edge of Time (Vic-20), Attack of the Mutant Camels (C64), Tempest 2000 (Jaguar), Space Giraffe (Xbox 360), Gridrunner++ (PC) and, of course, TxK (Vita).

Polybius will be a digital release in the PlayStation Store. PS Plus subscribers can pre-order at a 20% discount, bringing the price down to £11.19.

I played this a while back at an event. It's good fun in an almost laid back kind of way. But VR didn't seem quite right as the camera seemed to move when your head didn't tilt, and resulted in me feeling quite nausious for a few hours afterwards. I played it on a PSVR unit, and my lad had a go on an oculus

When I first got a 3DS it would make me feel very tired after a short play, but after a week or so it was all fine. It might just be the same for VR, I don't know, although I have to say I didn't get any motion sickness from the Vive.

The Llamasoft guys have hinted that the release date could be delayed by around four weeks, taking it to late May. A wee bit frustrating but only because I'm so keen to try it out! Ah well, a few extra weeks of polish :-).

The story tells of an unheard-of new arcade game appearing in several suburbs of Portland, Oregon in 1981, something of a rarity at the time. The game is described as proving popular to the point of addiction,[1] with lines forming around the machines often resulting in fighting over who would play next. The urban legend describes how the machines were visited by men in black, who collected unknown data from the machines,[1] allegedly testing responses to the game's psychoactive effects. Players supposedly suffered from a series of unpleasant side effects, including amnesia, insomnia and hallucinations.[3]

The company named in most accounts of the game is Sinneslöschen,[1] described by writer Brian Dunning as "not-quite-idiomatic German" meaning "sense delete" or "sensory deprivation" (derived from Sinne, 'senses' and löschen, 'to extinguish' or 'to delete').[

What I love about evil doers, shadowy government agencies and the illuminati is that they just can’t resist showing off and giving themselves away. “Call our company “WE WILL DELETE YOUR SENSES!!” but make sure it is in German so nobody knows”.

The menus and presentation are a little clunky - in an endearing way - but, once you get into the game - my word it's a rush. The mixture of eyeball-breaking colour and a terrific soundtrack really does give the feel of something unique; it's certainly not something that often crops up in gaming today.

It's so simple to play - just move left/right and hold fire - but the concentration required is extraordinary and you have to "get into it" so that you're on the same wavelength. I've played around thirty minutes so far but I will be back for more .

Oh, and I've been playing in 2D mode. The game can be played in PSVR and, by most accounts that I've read so far, it's an astounding experience. Until now I have had absolutely zero interest in VR... but I'd love to try this game on it.

So, calling HSH to the thread...

HSH28 wrote:...

...what do you reckon of it? Particularly PSVR mode? Oh, and I know you'll be a little less hyperbolic than I am .

The menus and presentation are a little clunky - in an endearing way - but, once you get into the game - my word it's a rush. The mixture of eyeball-breaking colour and a terrific soundtrack really does give the feel of something unique; it's certainly not something that often crops up in gaming today.

It's so simple to play - just move left/right and hold fire - but the concentration required is extraordinary and you have to "get into it" so that you're on the same wavelength. I've played around thirty minutes so far but I will be back for more .

Oh, and I've been playing in 2D mode. The game can be played in PSVR and, by most accounts that I've read so far, it's an astounding experience. Until now I have had absolutely zero interest in VR... but I'd love to try this game on it.

So, calling HSH to the thread...

HSH28 wrote:...

...what do you reckon of it? Particularly PSVR mode? Oh, and I know you'll be a little less hyperbolic than I am .

That's great to hear Jawa. I hope it will eventually comes to Switch, I don't know if llamasoft signed some exclusivity with Sony though?

I'm interested in you comments on the simple controls. I'm 100% behind stuff that controls simply, so that you can get straight into mastering the game itself instead of the control system.

What sort of variety of the stages does the game offer, or is that too early to say yet?

Starquake wrote:That's great to hear Jawa. I hope it will eventually comes to Switch, I don't know if llamasoft signed some exclusivity with Sony though?

I believe they did sign a deal, Starquake - six months exclusivity to PlayStation. I am an occassional visitor to Llamasoft's YakYak forum and it seems that Jeff and Giles are planning to release the game for PC VR devices once the deal has completed. I think that Dino Dini signed a similar deal with Kick Off Revival.

Starquake wrote:...What sort of variety of the stages does the game offer, or is that too early to say yet?

Yeah, it's simple to pick up but there is a lot to learn! I'm not very good at it yet but I've only played thirty minutes or so. There are fifty stages in the game and the supporting soundtrack (26 tunes) is superb.

The game can be played in 2D (normal), 3D (for 3D TVs) and PSVR. I don't have PSVR but the game is meant to be awesome on it.

I just love that fact that Jeff and Giles are still making games... as you know, Jeff was one of the original "bedroom coders" from the 80s and it would be cool if he had a fresh "hit" game. In latter years he has had unfortunate timing with his choice of release formats... hopefully this one is the right thing at the right time .